


How We Survive

by Orion Arthur Rietveld (ameowicafjones)



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Author is a college student so lord knows when and how often this will update, Character Death, Direct Quotes from Canon, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Insecurity, Literally Every Cliche Honestly, Major Character Injury, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Overuse of Metaphors, Past Abuse, Spoilers for literally the entire show, Tags May Change, Transphobia, because its v good, dumb young adults being cute, mostly canon compliant (excepting Barry's backstory), my Lup is based on magsainsley's, she won't say she's in love (but she is), some very good rowdy kids
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-19
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2019-01-19 13:15:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12410991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ameowicafjones/pseuds/Orion%20Arthur%20Rietveld
Summary: Messy pasts, time loops, world-devouring hiveminds, wars, lost memories, lost families, and all that comes after. Yet they persisted.





	1. Not Shooting, Just a Star

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Hurricane](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11190105) by [magsainsley](https://archiveofourown.org/users/magsainsley/pseuds/magsainsley). 



Lup Fromteevee was the most gorgeous thing Barry Bluejeans had ever laid eyes on, and he knew from the second he saw her that he would fall in love with that girl. He was right. The longer he knew her, she became less like a deity, yet more and more the object of Barry’s worship. The imperfections that slowly revealed themselves to him were what made her perfect. She was everything to him. The sun, the moon, the stars. No one had ever captured his attention like this, and no one else ever would.

But how could someone as awe-inspiring as Lup so much as consider a man like him? He was average. Sure, he was smart enough, but nothing else about him was extraordinary. No one had ever appreciated him for anything, excepting his apparently uncanny likeness to a punching bag.

...No one… before Lup. Sure, everyone on the Starblaster was great, especially in comparison to everyone he’d ever known previously. But none of them were quite so accepting of him as Lup was. Maybe it was because she understood what life could be like for a transgender person, being trans herself. That must be it, he decided. Birds of a feather. One, single feather, which had previously left him with no other birds. Why else would she care?

But slowly he realized that that just wasn’t it. Lup was so fiery, so passionate, that upon first glance, she was a comet, hurtling through space faster than Barry could keep up with. Even if he could, he’d just burn up and crumble into nothing in the presence of the heat that came off her in waves. He had to blink and rub his eyes a few times before he understood that she was actually a star. Yes, she could easily burn him up like a piece of paper in a fireplace, if she so chose, but she was far calmer than he originally anticipated. She could just as easily leave him filled with warmth and basking in her golden light. And she did. It was addictive. Slowly, slowly, he began to need her like he needed water.

It was the sixteenth cycle when it finally hit him. It was a rough cycle. They’d been fighting for their lives the entire time, and after the first few months, Barry broke down. He’d thought he was alone, and began crying before he reached his cabin. And then…

”Barry?”

_No, no, no, no no. Anyone but her._

”I’m fine,” he said quietly, wiping his eyes quickly and refusing to turn and look at her.

There was a long pause, and then, “Clearly not.” Footsteps, and a gentle hand on his upper arm. He couldn’t hide from her anymore.

”You don’t have to be afraid to break down in front of us, Barold. Certainly not in front of me. We’re in this together.”

_Fuck._ “I’m just… I’m not used to being emotional in front of people. I’m fine.”

She moved so that she was facing him. The hall was dimly lit, and her eyes reflected what little light there was, like the cat his family had when he was little, he thought. And then he stopped thinking that, because he didn’t want Lup and his family to be thoughts he had together. These eyes cast a tender gaze upon him, which he felt rather than saw. “Barry, I understand if you don’t want to cry in front of us or whatever. That’s chill. But, like, none of us are going to judge you for it. If they do, I’ll beat them up.” He was just able to make out a slight smile on her lips. “You’re safe around us. I know it can be hard to trust people. I _know_. But I promise you. I won’t let anyone make you feel weak, or overly emotional, or whatever you’re afraid of. Not even Taako. Okay?”

That was the moment. Just like that, the walls that had kept him from falling in love with her before this point crumbled like autumn leaves under their feet.

And he didn’t respond, he just hugged her and cried.

And she said nothing, she just wrapped her arms around him and let him cry.

And they kept not letting go.


	2. The Woodcarver and the Wildflower Princess

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here's a much longer chapter, featuring Magnus and Julia! Enjoy!  
> -Bjorn! :)

Julia Waxman had lived in Raven’s Roost her entire life. She’d been born here, she’d lost her mother here, she’d been raised here, and she planned to live here for the rest of her life. Whether with a spouse or with her father, as she lived now, she didn’t particularly care. She’d never been much of a romance girl. For years now, every boy in a twenty mile radius seemed to try to court her, but she was having none of it.

Until a stranger stumbled into town one night and ended up on her front doorstep. She’d awoken to a _thud_ , followed shortly by what sounded like a knock on the door. Quietly, she slipped out of bed and moved toward the door, picking up a wood carving knife as she did so. She murmured something under her breath and waved her hand, causing a small fire to appear in the fireplace where only the embers of that day’s fire had remained just seconds earlier. Cautiously, she opened the door that led outside, ready to defend herself if need be.

There was certainly a big, burly man outside. He was probably about twice her size, all muscle and scar tissue. But he wasn’t in any shape to do much at all. He was still holding onto consciousness, just barely. His right hand was over his left side and covered in blood, which also streaked his face and clothes. 

Julia gasped. They had to do something. She dragged the man inside as best she could (she almost got him to the fire, which she was rather proud of), then ran to wake her father. He always knew what to do.

“Papa,” she said, as she shook him awake. “A man just came to our door. He’s hurt real bad…” 

Steven groaned and cracked open one eye at first. She was covered in blood now too, which would cause most fathers to panic, but by now, it barely even fazed him. Once he’d processed what she said to him, he wasted no time in getting up to help Julia clean and bandage the man’s wound so that he wouldn’t bleed out before they could get a cleric’s help in the morning. Julia decided to sit up and keep an eye on the man, just in case, while her father went back to sleep.

Not much happened through the night. She kept the fire going and studied the stranger’s face. He really wasn’t too bad looking, when she thought about it… not that she was thinking about it or anything. She blushed at the thought.

Early the next morning, they were able to bring a cleric in to take care of the wound correctly. Not long after the cleric left, the man woke up.

He looked around groggily, first around the room, then at Steven, then at Julia… and he stopped. “Oh,” he said quietly. “You’re the one who pulled me in here, aren’t you?”

She nodded. “What? Surprised? I’m tougher than I look, you know.”

He shook his head. “No, just grateful. You did save me, after all.”

“Oh.”

“I suppose I owe you an explanation, huh? My name’s Magnus Burnsides. Everything’s a little hazy, but I remember some guy in fancy armor attacking me. I managed to make it here before I couldn’t keep walking, so I hoped that you would be able to help. And here we are.”

Fancy armor… “One of Kalen’s men, no doubt.” She shook her head. “I’m Julia Waxman. My father’s the local blacksmith. He does lots of other stuff too.”

“Julia,” he said, the name leaving his lips in a careful, hushed tone, as if reciting a prayer.

And her heart skipped a beat.

What the fuck?

She smiled and laughed a little awkwardly. “Yeah, that’s me. Anyway, what were you doing wandering out there late at night?”

He frowned. “I can’t remember…”

She tilted her head to the side. “Strange. Though you did lose a lot of blood. Suppose it must’ve taken its toll on your brain. Maybe rest will help. Do you have a family, Magnus? Anyone who’d be worried if they didn’t see you in a few days?”

He shook his head. “No. Not… not anymore.”

There was a sadness to those words that she certainly couldn’t fathom, as they seemed to run deeper than even he could wrap his mind around. Regardless, she felt sorry for him.

“Well, we’ll take good care of you.” She smiled reassuringly and gave his hand a squeeze. And then, “Your hands… are they those of a craftsman or of a warrior? I couldn’t say for sure.”

He grinned. “Both. I carve wood. Mostly ducks.”

“Papa knows how to work with wood. Maybe he’ll teach you a few things after you’re back on your feet.”

“You think? I wouldn’t mind picking up some new techniques and stuff.” He looked pretty excited about the possibility.

“I’ll see what I can do. For now you gotta rest, though.”

The next couple of weeks went on something like that, with Magnus recovering and Julia keeping him company and making sure his wounds healed nicely. 

“Papa?” Julia asked Steven. She’d noticed that day that Magnus was almost fully healed. “Can… if he wants to, can Magnus stay with us a while? He’s told me he doesn’t have anywhere else to go, and I’d feel better knowing he has a place to stay and stuff than wondering if he’ll be okay out on his own. Plus… I like his company.”

Steven looked at his daughter and smiled as she explained herself. “Of course he can, Julia. He can stay as long as he needs to.”

She grinned and hugged him, exclaiming, “Thank you, Papa!” She then ran upstairs to where Magnus was now staying to tell him the news, but skidded to a halt outside the room he was staying so that she could smooth her skirt and calm herself down. She wasn’t about to make him think she _cared_ about him.

Once she’d gathered herself, she opened the door and stuck her head in, making sure he was awake before she actually stepped inside. “Papa says you can stay after you’re all healed, by the way,” she said when he looked up at her. She tried to stay cool, but couldn’t help but grin. Damnit.

He smiled. “You know, I don’t think it’d kill you to admit you like my company, Julia,” he replied. “You’re trying real hard not to.”

“Am not!” she scoffed, then did a sort of half shrug. “Okay, maybe I am. You’re less annoying than all the people who live here in Raven’s Roost. There. That’s all the sentiment you’ll get out of me.” She stuck her tongue out at him. “Get some rest, loser.”

“Go do your chores before Steven gets mad at you, nerd,” he replied, not missing a beat.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “How do you know I didn’t already?”

“Well, when you come back from doing them, you always come check on me, and your hair is poofier than usual, and your cheeks are pink, and your lips are always parted ‘cause you’re out of breath. And then you come over here and flop down on the corner of the bed right there—“ He pointed. “—And you complain about everything. You haven’t done that yet today.”

She blushed and cleared her throat. “Observant, aren’t we? Well, if you’ll excuse me, I have chores to do.”

He laughed. “Well, thank you for briefly gracing me with your presence.”

She stuck her tongue out at him again and turned to leave. Once she was in the hallway and the door was closed, she ran a hand through her hair. There was just something about him. She’d thought it was simply the fact that he was new and unfamiliar at first, but she’d seen him _at least as much_ as she’d seen her father lately. 

_Get your shit together, Julia,_ she thought as she took a deep breath and headed downstairs to begin her daily chores. 

***

It was about a month later, and Magnus was certainly doing much better than he had when Julia first met him. He was back on his feet and he’d practically become Steven’s apprentice. Her father quickly took a liking to him, and both of the Waxmans were very impressed by his woodworking skills, which he always seemed to undersell.

He’d quickly become Julia’s best friend. She’d never met anyone else who fit with her so well. She decided that was probably why she always felt so weird around him. It wasn’t a bad weird, so that just made sense.

The shop wasn’t open today, so Magnus and Julia had decided to go be dumb kids in the woods just outside of town. Julia knew the area well, and so she packed them a picnic and led him out to a pretty meadow. 

“Mama used to take me out here,” she explained to Magnus as they laid out their picnic blanket. “There’s lots of useful herbs. Most of all those wildflowers and stuff.”

He looked around. “Wow. That’s pretty cool.” 

They talked like that for a while, about Julia’s life growing up in Raven’s Roost and about Magnus’s childhood (he couldn’t remember lots of details anymore, but he told her about his mom and sisters.) Occasionally, Julia would bring up about the way the boys in town acted and Magnus got mad and flustered and said that if they tried being gross, he’d beat them up for her. She told him she appreciated the sentiment, but she could beat their asses on her own, thank you. 

Eventually, they packed up whatever was left lying around into the basket and placed it under a nearby tree. Somehow, Magnus ended up chasing Julia around the meadow, both of them laughing. She tripped and fell and he rushed over to check on her. She just had a couple of scrapes and grass stains, and she pushed him away playfully when he leaned over to look her over, but gratefully took his hand when he offered it to help her up.

She wasn’t sure how, but she ended up falling asleep with her head on his thigh. She woke up a while later. The sun was getting lower in the sky, casting the prettiest golden light on everything. She sat up and he smiled at her and placed an expertly woven flower crown on her head. He admired his work for a moment, then nodded. “Don’t take it the wrong way when I say this? But you’re… beautiful. Really beautiful.” Most boys told her something like that and she punched them, but everything about the way he said it… his tone of voice, his uncharacteristic timidity, his vaguely awestruck expression… was so genuine that she had no urge to reprimand him. The moment was magical, in a way she would never be able to explain.

She smiled. “Oh… thank you.” She looked around, now pretty sure that that weird feeling about him was _not_ just because she really enjoyed him as a friend. “We should probably head back.”

He nodded. “Yeah, probably.” He stood, then helped her up. They retrieved the picnic basket, and they made the trip back home. 

That night she laid in bed, awake, the flower crown sitting on her bedside table. She couldn’t stop thinking about the day. It was the kind of thing most kids in town would do on dates. That unfamiliar familiarity, not knowing what they were doing, just that they were doing it together, and that was good. Even the most confident became unsure of themselves. _You’re… beautiful. Really beautiful._ None of it was really much of a friends thing, looking back on that.

But most surprising of all… she was completely fine with that.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry that this is so short. Hopefully I can make others longer in the future, but this just might just be one of those. I'll try to update often, but I am a college student, so don't expect much of me.


End file.
